Company Number:Sc001878
Date of Incorporation: 9 July 1889
Contact Details: Johnstone House, 52-54 Rose Street, Aberdeen, AB10 1UD
Operating Details: Active (Private Limited Company)
Other names (if known): William McMurray (1825-1837), William and James McMurray (1837-1854), Robert McFarlane & Son (1854-1897) The United Wire Works Ltd (1897-c.1971)
Function of Company*: Manufacture of Wire Products (2873)
Headquarters/Base of Operations Location: Formerly Glasgow, from 1897 Granton, Edinburgh
Area of Operation: Exports worldwide
*Taken from Standard Industrial Classification 2003, as used by Companies House in 2010
Records
Held By: privately held
Scope/type: records of various wire manufacturers who were absorbed into United Wire; George Christie; Charles Topham & Co; Stevens & Manning; United Fabrics; Maxwell Davidson Evaporators; Baldwin Staples; United Holyoke Corporation; Seamark; Thule United; Star Screens; Uniwire.
For United Wire; Company Documents (articles of Association etc); research and Development designs; order books; agreements; financial records; photographs; artefacts; films; various records of other subsidiaries.
Conditions governing access/use: Applications may be made in writing to the above address
Related records: Court records, export records and photos held by the NAS. Search under ‘United Wire’ as a phrase
In 1825, William McMurray set up in a modest way as a wire worker in the Trongate in Glasgow. This small business expanded and, in the course of expansion, changed its location a number of times before it left Glasgow for the East Coast.
William McMurray's early wire-working establishment dealt with the manufacture of such ordinary and domestic articles as fire-guards, bell-pulls, and even mouse-traps. None the less, the business prospered so much that the firm moved their premises from the West to the East of Scotland, from the Saltmarket in Glasgow to Leith Walk in the environs of Edinburgh. William’s step-brother, James McMurray, was taken into partnership, though by 1835 William began to become more interested in paper-manufacture, in which trade he made his later name and fortune.
In 1858 there was an alteration in the name of the firm which had taken up its habitat in the growing Leith Walk. This alteration was not in name only. In this year the 'Edina Works' by which Mr McMurray's business had come to be known, announced to Edinburgh and their customers all over the world that the business would now be known as: “Robert McFarlane & Son, Successors to Wm. & Jas. McMurray, Wire Cloth Manufacturers and Patentees of the Self-Acting Cylindrical Pulp Washers. "
It will be noted that not only had the firm changed its name, but that in the announcement of its patent it was pointing in the direction which it was to follow with international success for nearly a century. At last the wire-weaving industry of old Mr William McMurray had begun to co-ordinate with his other interest-paper. The result of this union was probably unforeseen by all, except one young man at that time. This one young man was John McFarlane, a nephew of the McMurray brothers. His father, Robert (of whom there is only scanty information), had married William McMurray’s sister, Susanah, and had been taken into his brother-in-law’s business. It is not recorded that he himself had much influence on the McMurray brothers. It is significant, however, that his activity, such as it was, was mostly in the paper side of their interests. His son John joined the firm in 1856 at the age of nineteen. Shortly after he joined the firm his father, Robert McFarlane, died, leaving the management of the business on the youthful but capable shoulders of John.
Having achieved this success as a youthful manager of a family business it may well be imagined that John McFarlane’s ambitions soared. In the true spirit of the nineteenth century industrialism, he wanted to make it (the business which he had built up) all his own. He does not appear to have met with much difficulty in this objective. His uncle, Mr William McMurray, was well advanced in years, and was, besides, deeply committed with his paper-making and other enterprises. In any event the sale of the Edina Wire Works business was agreed upon between uncle and nephew in 1872. The nephew, John McFarlane, purchased the ground, buildings, plant, and equipment of the Edina Works for a sum which, considering its future, seems moderate enough to us to-day - £8,000.
As soon as Mr John McFarlane was settled in possession as well as in the chair, he proceeded to overhaul the business, both from the point of view of industrial plant and in ‘the art of selling.’ Securely established in the Home Market in the early eighties he began to consider export trade. Within the next few years the energetic proprietor had opined up lucrative businesses with paper-making countries overseas. A good deal of their export and expanding trade came from the forceful ‘selling personality’ of John McFarlane. Such a personality would not have had long influence if the goods he had to sell had not been first class, but the production and the goods were modern and high class for their time.
Unfortunately, in a comparatively young industry without established traditions or customs, there began to emerge some confusion and divergence of views, among several firms, in regard to the nomenclature of meshes, trade usages and terms. This state of affairs was not in the best interests of the industry as a whole, and if not speedily rectified would eventually have led to trouble with the paper mills. The problem was how best to smooth out the confusing anomalies.
The policy of the management at Leith Walk had always been to enhance the prestige and authority of the industry, and here was an opportunity to give practical effect to that policy. After a thorough examination of the situation, John McFarlane and his son decided that the best solution of the difficulty would be to gather - if possible - all the firms in the industry under one management. Negotiations were set afoot to that end. The majority of the firms approached agreed to the plan, and on 2nd December 1897 the following firms were incorporated in a limited liability company under the title of THE UNITED WIRE WORKS, LTD.:
• Robert McFarlane & Son, Edina Works, Leith Walk, Edinburgh.
• MacCormack & Mills, Baltic Works, Bridgeton, Glasgow.
• James Brodie & Co., Great Eastern Works, Glasgow.
• William Mountain & Sons, Trafalgar Wire Works, Newcastle-on-Tyne.
The last-named business had previously been acquired by Robert McFarlane & Son, and was included by them in the pool. Also included were the paper machine wirecloth departments of:
William Riddell & Co., Springfield Wire Works, Glasgow, and
Dockerty & Co., Mile End Wire Works, Glasgow.
The first Directors of the new Company were:
• John McFarlane (Chairman)
• Arthur McFarlane
• John MacCormack
• James Brodie.
Mr John Newton McFarlane (a younger brother of Arthur McFarlane), who had been managing the office side of the Leith Walk business, was appointed Secretary to the enterprise.
It will be noted that the prime movers in this revolutionary but necessary step in the history of the industry were the Chairman and his assistants of the Edina Works at Leith Walk. It was due to this fact also that the Chairman of the new united concern was the proprietor of the old ‘Robert McFarlane Works’. It is due also to this initial enterprise on the part of the now no longer young John McFarlane, who was now partially retired, and his son Arthur, that the headquarters of this great national combine is now in Granton by Edinburgh.
From that time the progress of the industry and, in particular, of The United Wire Works has been smoothly expansionist. The McMurrays and the McFarlanes have already entered the course of this narrative as it proceeded. It is only fit to mention here, at the end of this chapter, two prominent personalities that influenced the concern in this century-apart from Mr Arthur McFarlane - that is to say the two other Chairmen.
Mr John MacCormack became Chairman in 1903 until his death in 1924. There are many who remember his untiring and business-like zeal. His association with Mr Arthur McFarlane, who succeeded him, was an ideal example of the combination of executive ability on the one hand, and the driving force of inspiration on the other.
After Arthur McFarlane’s death in 1934, his place was filled by W. D. T. Green, M.B.E., who at this date is both Chairman and Managing Director of the Company.
United Wire Limited
Company Number:Sc001878
Date of Incorporation: 9 July 1889
Contact Details: Johnstone House, 52-54 Rose Street, Aberdeen, AB10 1UD
Operating Details: Active (Private Limited Company)
Other names (if known): William McMurray (1825-1837), William and James McMurray (1837-1854), Robert McFarlane & Son (1854-1897) The United Wire Works Ltd (1897-c.1971)
Function of Company*: Manufacture of Wire Products (2873)
Headquarters/Base of Operations Location: Formerly Glasgow, from 1897 Granton, Edinburgh
Area of Operation: Exports worldwide
*Taken from Standard Industrial Classification 2003, as used by Companies House in 2010
Records
Held By: privately held
Scope/type: records of various wire manufacturers who were absorbed into United Wire; George Christie; Charles Topham & Co; Stevens & Manning; United Fabrics; Maxwell Davidson Evaporators; Baldwin Staples; United Holyoke Corporation; Seamark; Thule United; Star Screens; Uniwire.
For United Wire; Company Documents (articles of Association etc); research and Development designs; order books; agreements; financial records; photographs; artefacts; films; various records of other subsidiaries.
Conditions governing access/use: Applications may be made in writing to the above address
Related records: Court records, export records and photos held by the NAS. Search under ‘United Wire’ as a phrase
Company History
In 1825, William McMurray set up in a modest way as a wire worker in the Trongate in Glasgow. This small business expanded and, in the course of expansion, changed its location a number of times before it left Glasgow for the East Coast.
William McMurray's early wire-working establishment dealt with the manufacture of such ordinary and domestic articles as fire-guards, bell-pulls, and even mouse-traps. None the less, the business prospered so much that the firm moved their premises from the West to the East of Scotland, from the Saltmarket in Glasgow to Leith Walk in the environs of Edinburgh. William’s step-brother, James McMurray, was taken into partnership, though by 1835 William began to become more interested in paper-manufacture, in which trade he made his later name and fortune.
In 1858 there was an alteration in the name of the firm which had taken up its habitat in the growing Leith Walk. This alteration was not in name only. In this year the 'Edina Works' by which Mr McMurray's business had come to be known, announced to Edinburgh and their customers all over the world that the business would now be known as: “Robert McFarlane & Son, Successors to Wm. & Jas. McMurray, Wire Cloth Manufacturers and Patentees of the Self-Acting Cylindrical Pulp Washers. "
It will be noted that not only had the firm changed its name, but that in the announcement of its patent it was pointing in the direction which it was to follow with international success for nearly a century. At last the wire-weaving industry of old Mr William McMurray had begun to co-ordinate with his other interest-paper. The result of this union was probably unforeseen by all, except one young man at that time. This one young man was John McFarlane, a nephew of the McMurray brothers. His father, Robert (of whom there is only scanty information), had married William McMurray’s sister, Susanah, and had been taken into his brother-in-law’s business. It is not recorded that he himself had much influence on the McMurray brothers. It is significant, however, that his activity, such as it was, was mostly in the paper side of their interests. His son John joined the firm in 1856 at the age of nineteen. Shortly after he joined the firm his father, Robert McFarlane, died, leaving the management of the business on the youthful but capable shoulders of John.
Having achieved this success as a youthful manager of a family business it may well be imagined that John McFarlane’s ambitions soared. In the true spirit of the nineteenth century industrialism, he wanted to make it (the business which he had built up) all his own. He does not appear to have met with much difficulty in this objective. His uncle, Mr William McMurray, was well advanced in years, and was, besides, deeply committed with his paper-making and other enterprises. In any event the sale of the Edina Wire Works business was agreed upon between uncle and nephew in 1872. The nephew, John McFarlane, purchased the ground, buildings, plant, and equipment of the Edina Works for a sum which, considering its future, seems moderate enough to us to-day - £8,000.
As soon as Mr John McFarlane was settled in possession as well as in the chair, he proceeded to overhaul the business, both from the point of view of industrial plant and in ‘the art of selling.’ Securely established in the Home Market in the early eighties he began to consider export trade. Within the next few years the energetic proprietor had opined up lucrative businesses with paper-making countries overseas. A good deal of their export and expanding trade came from the forceful ‘selling personality’ of John McFarlane. Such a personality would not have had long influence if the goods he had to sell had not been first class, but the production and the goods were modern and high class for their time.
Unfortunately, in a comparatively young industry without established traditions or customs, there began to emerge some confusion and divergence of views, among several firms, in regard to the nomenclature of meshes, trade usages and terms. This state of affairs was not in the best interests of the industry as a whole, and if not speedily rectified would eventually have led to trouble with the paper mills. The problem was how best to smooth out the confusing anomalies.
The policy of the management at Leith Walk had always been to enhance the prestige and authority of the industry, and here was an opportunity to give practical effect to that policy. After a thorough examination of the situation, John McFarlane and his son decided that the best solution of the difficulty would be to gather - if possible - all the firms in the industry under one management. Negotiations were set afoot to that end. The majority of the firms approached agreed to the plan, and on 2nd December 1897 the following firms were incorporated in a limited liability company under the title of THE UNITED WIRE WORKS, LTD.:
• Robert McFarlane & Son, Edina Works, Leith Walk, Edinburgh.
• MacCormack & Mills, Baltic Works, Bridgeton, Glasgow.
• James Brodie & Co., Great Eastern Works, Glasgow.
• William Mountain & Sons, Trafalgar Wire Works, Newcastle-on-Tyne.
The last-named business had previously been acquired by Robert McFarlane & Son, and was included by them in the pool. Also included were the paper machine wirecloth departments of:
William Riddell & Co., Springfield Wire Works, Glasgow, and
Dockerty & Co., Mile End Wire Works, Glasgow.
The first Directors of the new Company were:
• John McFarlane (Chairman)
• Arthur McFarlane
• John MacCormack
• James Brodie.
Mr John Newton McFarlane (a younger brother of Arthur McFarlane), who had been managing the office side of the Leith Walk business, was appointed Secretary to the enterprise.
It will be noted that the prime movers in this revolutionary but necessary step in the history of the industry were the Chairman and his assistants of the Edina Works at Leith Walk. It was due to this fact also that the Chairman of the new united concern was the proprietor of the old ‘Robert McFarlane Works’. It is due also to this initial enterprise on the part of the now no longer young John McFarlane, who was now partially retired, and his son Arthur, that the headquarters of this great national combine is now in Granton by Edinburgh.
From that time the progress of the industry and, in particular, of The United Wire Works has been smoothly expansionist. The McMurrays and the McFarlanes have already entered the course of this narrative as it proceeded. It is only fit to mention here, at the end of this chapter, two prominent personalities that influenced the concern in this century-apart from Mr Arthur McFarlane - that is to say the two other Chairmen.
Mr John MacCormack became Chairman in 1903 until his death in 1924. There are many who remember his untiring and business-like zeal. His association with Mr Arthur McFarlane, who succeeded him, was an ideal example of the combination of executive ability on the one hand, and the driving force of inspiration on the other.
After Arthur McFarlane’s death in 1934, his place was filled by W. D. T. Green, M.B.E., who at this date is both Chairman and Managing Director of the Company.
This information taken from a pamphlet available at the above web link http://www.grantonhistory.org/industry/wire_works_1.htm